Were Vikings who had a hard time growing facial hair and beards ostracized or ridiculed?

by TheAtomicBobert
EyeStache

Yes! There's an infamous bit of Njáls saga where Njál is referred to as skegglaus, or beardless, and his sons as the taðskegglingar, shit-bearded ones, because he famously couldn't (or wouldn't, it's not 100% clear) grow a beard.

The passage in question:

Bergþóra mælti er menn sátu undir borðum: "Gjafar eru yður gefnar feðgum og verðið þér litlir drengir af ef þér launið engu."

"Hversu eru gjafar þær?" segir Skarphéðinn.

"Þér synir mínir eigið allir eina gjöf saman. Þér eruð kallaðir taðskegglingar en bóndi minn karl hinn skegglausi."

And translated:

Bergþóra said to the men sat at the table: "A gift has been given to your father and you little boys, if you pay it any attention."

"What gift is that?" said Skarpéhðinn.

"You, my sons, are all given the same gift. They are calling you taðskegglingar, and my husband the beardless old man."

The nickname follows them and is used to goad them through the rest of the saga. It's not a pleasant thing.